Softball Drops Pair of Hard Fought Contests

OVERVIEW – MINNESOTA ST. MANKATO/MINNESOTA DULUTH

SCORES:  Northwood Timberwolves 1, Minnesota St. Mankato Mavericks 7; Northwood 2, Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs 3

RECORDS: Northwood 7-9, Minnesota St. Mankato 16-3, Minnesota Duluth University 6-3

LOCATION: Clermont, Fla. (PFX Spring Games)  

RECAP: Northwood fell in a pair of hard fought night games against two tough teams in Clermont, Florida. 

MINNESOTA ST. MANKATO/NORTHWOOD HIGHLIGHTS

• Both pitchers began the game strong for their respective teams as the game remained scoreless after two innings. Northwood's Mackenzie Norton retired the first six batters she faced.
• Minnesota State Mankato broke through in the third inning, after a leadoff triple that scored a sacrifice fly, to make the game 1-0 in favor of the Mavericks after three innings.  
• Northwood continued to struggle from the plate as Minnesota State's Coley Ries settled into a groove in the circle and pitched confidently all game long for the Mavericks.
• Minnesota State Mankato plated three in the fourth, one in the fifth, and two in the sixth to grab a commanding 7-0 lead heading to the top of the seventh.
• In the top of the seventh, Northwood wouldn't go away quietly and continued to fight. Jennifer Wontorcik reached on an error and was pinch ran for by Mariah Hood. Courtney Wensley smashed a line shot through the gap in right – center to score Hood all the way from first to make it 7-1.
• That is all the Timberwolves could muster offensively as Minnesota State Mankato recorded the final out of the game to preserve the 7-1 victory.

MINNESOTA ST. MANKATO/NORTHWOOD STATS

• Runs/Hits/Errors Minnesota St. Mankato: 7/7/1, Northwood: 1/4/2
• Runners Left on Base: Minnesota St. Mankato: 2, Northwood: 4
• Winning Pitcher: Coley Ries (9-1): 6 IP, 3 H, 0R, 0ER, 12 K
• Losing Pitcher: Makenzie Norton (1-2), 4.2 IP, 6H, 5R, 4ER 0BB 2k

TOP NU PERFORMERS

• Bartodziej: 2-3
• Wensley: 1-3, RBI

MINNESOTA DULUTH UNIVERSITY HIGHLIGHTS

• Minnesota Duluth struck first in the top of the third inning with a two run home run for the games first runs and the Bulldogs lead 2-0.
• The Timberwolves did however respond in the home half of the third with a run to cut the lead in half at 2-1. Karli Godlewski lead the inning off reaching on a walk, followed by a Meghan Franz bunt single, and a few batters later, Riley Ostopowicz grounded out to score Godlewski. The Timberwolves would have to settle for just the one run in the inning though.
• In the bottom of the fourth, Northwood again made the Bulldogs pay for a lead-off walk as Wontorcik drew a free pass. She was pinch ran for by Mariah Hood, and after a Ostopowicz double and a Hayley D'Avilar sacrifice fly, Northwood tied the game at two apiece after four innings.
• Minnesota Duluth manufactured a run in the top of the sixth to pull ahead 3-2.
• Unfortunately for Northwood, they could not push across the tying run and Minnesota Duluth hung on to preserve the 3-2 win.  

MINNESOTA DULUTH /NORTHWOOD STATS

• Runs/Hits/Errors: Minnesota Duluth: 3/3/0, Northwood: 2/4/1
• Runners Left on Base: Minnesota Duluth University: 2, Northwood: 5
• Winning Pitcher:  Sam Harman (5-3) 7IP, 4H, 2R, 1ER, 2K, 3BB
• Losing Pitcher: Vanessa Ewing (2-3) 7 IP, 3H, 3R, 3ER, 9K 2BB

TOP NU PERFORMERS

• Abby Joseph (2-3, 2B)

UP NEXT

• The Timberwolves will continue play in Florida Friday (March 10), taking on Winnona State at 8:00 a.m. and Illinois – Springfield at 10:30 a.m.